Welcome back to our weekly fintech podcast!

This week, I had the chance to sit down with Sumant Shringari, the CEO and Co-Founder of Pontus, and Sandeep Sood, the Founder and CEO of Kunai.

Pontus was established in 2023 to automate the large, difficult, and often fragmented back-office operations critical to large enterprises – such as the Global 2,000 banks that they count as customers. It was interesting to hear Sumant's perspective from his time working with banks about the difficulty in automating regulated workflows and breaking down data silos. For all the hype around generative AI, the risk is real when it comes to financial services use cases, and it speaks to the necessity for strong partners that can provide dependable implementation.

It's worth taking a look through Pontus' outcomes library as well. Fintech founders will recognize a lot of the solutions here, such as Automated Account Reconciliation, Predictive Budget Forecasting, and Enterprise Risk Assessment. All of these functions today either require massive internal teams or significant vendor integration. Pontus' goal is to replace the need for both.

Before we get into it, here is a little more background on the companies themselves:

Pontus

Pontus - Making Manual Work Obsolete

PONTUS Labs transforms manual work from cost sinks into value drivers. We partner with C-level executives at public companies to identify inefficiencies within their teams, reducing manual processes from months to minutes. By replacing manual workflows with our automation platform, PONTUS helps enterprise teams—from finance and legal to HR—do more with less. The company operates on a performance-based model: we're only paid when we deliver measurable results. Founded by a team of YC engineers, AI researchers and intelligence experts who helped locate Osama bin Laden, PONTUS brings cutting-edge technical firepower to cost center transformation.

Kunai - Home Page

Kunai accelerates innovation for the world’s leading financial institutions.

Home Page

Kunai Co. is a team of developers, designers, and product managers building seamless customer experiences that unite digital products with FinTech. Kunai concepts, designs, and develops unique digital products and payment experiences for the world's top companies.

Starting in 1999, Kunai helped Cisco Systems prepare for Y2K, and then in 2006, built the world's first touchscreen PC. Later, Kunai designed and developed some of the world's first successful iOS apps.

With Capital One’s acquisition in 2015, we focused on fintech and how to build on a massive scale, so a portion of our team rebranded as Kunai and continued to refine our approach to product development. Over 20 years, Kunai shipped over 150 digital products that are trusted by Fortune 500 companies and unicorn startups alike.

Check out the full conversation below, and enjoy!

🎧Automating Everything - How Pontus Wants to Change Enterprise Organizations with AI

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🎧Automating Everything - How Pontus Wants to Change Enterprise Organizations with AI by This Week in Fintech’s Podcast

Welcome back to our weekly fintech podcast!This week, I had the chance to sit down with Sumant Shringari, the CEO and Co-Founder of Pontus, and Sandeep Sood, the Founder and CEO of Kunai. Pontus was established in 2023 to automate the large, difficult, and often fragmented back-office operations critical to large enterprises – such as the Global 2,000 banks that they count as customers. It was interesting to hear Sumant’s perspective from his time working with banks about the difficulty in automating regulated workflows and breaking down data silos. For all the hype around generative AI, the risk is real when it comes to financial services use cases, and it speaks to the necessity for strong partners that can provide dependable implementation.It’s worth taking a look through Pontus’ outcomes library as well. Fintech founders will recognize a lot of the solutions here, such as Automated Account Reconciliation, Predictive Budget Forecasting, and Enterprise Risk Assessment. All of these functions today either require massive internal teams or significant vendor integration. Pontus’ goal is to replace the need for both.You can find both companies here:https://www.pontus.so/https://kunaico.com/

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🎧Automating Everything - How Pontus Wants to Change Enterprise Organizations with AI

Podcast Episode · This Week in Fintech’s Podcast · 05/20/2025 · 45m

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Overview

Nik Milanovic hosts a discussion with Sumant Shringari, founder of Pontus Labs, and Sandeep Sood, CEO of Kunai.

Pontus Labs, founded by a team of YC engineers and AI researchers, helps large enterprises eliminate inefficiencies through precision automation, focusing on financial services. They work with global 2,000 banks, reducing manual processes from months to minutes.

Kunai, with 500 engineers, specializes in AI automation, cloud engineering, and core banking applications, serving top US banks.

Both companies emphasize practical, outcome-based solutions over large-scale platforms. They discuss the importance of understanding and solving specific problems, the role of AI in automation, and the future of work in the context of automation.

Outline

Introduction of Guests and Their Backgrounds

• Nik Milanovic introduces Sumant Shringari, founder of Pontus Labs, and Sandeep Sood, founder of Kunai.
• Sumant Shringari's background includes dropping out from a PhD from Stanford, founding Gordian Software, and publishing AI and biology papers.
• Sandeep Sood's background includes founding Monsoon, which was acquired by Capital One, and co-founding Jungle Games, acquired by Flutter Entertainment.
• Kunai employs over 500 engineers and specializes in AI automation, cloud engineering, and core banking applications.

Overview of Pontus Labs and Kunai

• Nik Milanovic provides an overview of Pontus Labs, focusing on its automation platform and performance-based model.
• Sumant Shringari explains that Pontus works with large institutional customers to eliminate inefficiencies through precision automation.
• Sandeep Sood describes Kunai's focus on financial services innovation and its work with top US banks and payment networks.
• Both companies aim to transform cost centers into value drivers through AI and automation.

Challenges in Financial Services Automation

• Sumant Shringari discusses the productivity paradox in financial services, where despite increased technology, manual processes persist.
• Nik Milanovic and Sumant Shringari discuss the challenges of large institutions dealing with manual work and the limitations of external consultants and software providers.
• Sumant Shringari explains how Pontus addresses these challenges by understanding the root cause of inefficiencies and building tailored automation solutions.
• Sandeep Sood highlights the importance of focusing on specific problems and delivering outcomes rather than large-scale projects.

Case Study: Automating Financial Processes

• Sumant Shringari provides a case study of automating invoicing processes in large banks, where data is fragmented across different divisions.
• Pontus uses AI to understand the existing workflows and build automation solutions that integrate with existing systems.
• The approach involves recording workflows, using AI to identify inefficiencies, and building custom automation solutions.
• This method allows teams to focus on strategic work and reduces the risk of errors in audits and compliance.

The Role of AI in Automation

• Sumant Shringari discusses the impact of AI on automation, highlighting the ability to solve complex problems quickly with AI and ML.
• AI has lowered the barrier to entry for customization and made advanced technologies accessible to a wider audience.
• Sandeep Sood emphasizes the importance of focusing on specific problems and delivering outcomes rather than implementing large-scale platforms.
• The conversation touches on the limitations of AI in achieving 100% accuracy in certain tasks, such as financial statements.

Future of Work and Skillsets

• Nik Milanovic and Sumant Shringari discuss the future of work and the importance of developing the right skillsets for the age of automation.
• Sumant Shringari advises new college graduates to learn their craft thoroughly before leveraging AI tools.
• The conversation highlights the importance of being skilled in one's field to effectively use AI as a tool for augmentation.
• AI is seen as a boon to productivity for skilled professionals rather than an immediate replacement for average workers.

Practical Advice for Automation Journeys

• Sumant Shringari provides practical advice for companies starting their automation journey, emphasizing the importance of understanding the problem and measuring results.
• He advises focusing on outcomes rather than technology and using empirical data to guide decisions.
• The conversation highlights the need for honest and practical approaches to automation, avoiding the temptation to overcomplicate solutions.
• Both Sumant Shringari and Sandeep Sood stress the importance of delivering measurable outcomes and being transparent with clients.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

• Nik Milanovic thanks Sumant Shringari and Sandeep Sood for their insights and contributions to the conversation.
• The conversation concludes with a discussion on the importance of understanding the root causes of inefficiencies and delivering practical solutions.
• Both guests emphasize the need for a comprehensive and outcome-focused approach to automation.
• The discussion highlights the potential of AI and automation to transform financial services and improve productivity in large organizations.